CONSTITUTION, a body of fundamental laws and principles according to which a political state is governed. A constitution determines the organization of a government, the functions and powers of the government in general and of its subdivisions and officers, and how these functions and powers are to be exercised. It generally sets forth the substantive and procedural limitations on the government in its relationships with persons within the state, and it provides for change through a specified process of formal amendment.

宪法，据此治理一个政治国家的一套基本法律和原则。宪法决定政府的组织，政府的一般职权，及其下属部门和人员的职权，以及如何行使这些职权。它通常规定了政府与州内人员关系的实质性和程序性限制，并规定通过正式的修正案特殊程序进行变更。

A constitution is usually a single document; but it may be a group or series of documents, as was the constitution of the Third French Republic; or it may be simply the totality of basic legislation, as is the case in England. But regardless of its form, a constitution, broadly viewed, is a nation’s entire legal arrangement, as well as accepted practices and extralegal customs.

宪法通常是一种单一的文件；但也可能是一组或一系列文件，就像法兰西第三共和国宪法那样；或者它仅仅是基本立法的总和，像英格兰的情况那样。但不管形式如何，人们普遍认为，一部宪法是一个国家的全部法律安排，以及公认的惯例和法外习俗。

By contrast with a constitution, a charter is a limited grant of authority, a delegation of power to perform some single action or to engage in a particular field of operation. A compact can be distinguished from a constitution in that it is an agreement between equal parties and also covers very limited scope.

与宪法形成对比，宪章是一种有限的授权，一种执行某些单一行动或从事某一特定操作领域的权力授予。契约不同于宪法，因为它是平等各方之间的协议，而且它涵盖的范围也非常有限。

Written and Unwritten Constitutions.  Regardless of the nature of the national constitution—single document, group of documents, or the totality of fundamental legislation—the law of a land goes beyond these formal basic materials. It includes interpretations of the documents and legislation—by the judiciary in deciding cases, by the legislature in enacting statutes, by the executive in handing down executive orders, and by all citizens insofar as customs become generally accepted. These matters are usually referred to as the “unwritten constitution”; in practice they are as important as any written parts.

成文与不成文的宪法。且不论国家宪法的性质---单一文件，一组文件或基本立法的总和—一片国土的法律超越了这些正式的基本材料。它包括由司法机构判决案件，由立法机关制定法规，由行政部门下达行政命令，以及所有公民在习俗范围内普遍接受时的文件和立法解释。这些事项通常被称为“不成文宪法”；在实践中，它们与任何成文的部分一样重要。

The so-called “unwritten constitution” of England differs from that of any other country. It is the cumulative result of all the legal actions over the centuries beginning with the Magna Carta of 1215. As every statute is a part of the legal totality known as the English constitution, each act of Parliament in effect is an amendment to the constitution. Parliamentary discretion is legally unlimited, and judicial review, in the sense of applying fundamental standards to legislation, does not exist.

英格兰的所谓“不成文宪法”不同于任何其它国家的宪法。它是始于1215年《大宪章》以来几个世纪所有法律行动积累的结果。由于每一项法令都被称为英国宪法的法律整体的一部分，因此每一项议会法案实际上都是宪法修正案。议会的自由裁量权在法律上是不受限制的，而且在将基本标准运用于立法的意义上，司法审查是不存在的。

In all other countries there are basic written constitutions. A typical constitutional document begins with a preamble setting forth the aims and purposes of the constitution and the government it established. There follow divisions of the document that establish the legislative, executive, judicial, and administrative areas of operation. Both the organization and powers of these government branches are noted a long with limitations on the exercise of their powers. These limitations on the government are frequently further elaborated in the constitution as a bill of rights. The nature of the electorate is determined, and this may involve provisions for direct, popular legislation by the initiative or referendum, or both. There is also a section of the document devoted to detailing the processes of formal amendment. Finally, every constitution contains an ephemeral provision that sets forth the process for the document’s adoption and its placement into operation.

所有其它国家都有基本的成文宪法。一个典型的宪法文件会以序言开头，阐述宪法和它建立政府的目的和宗旨。该文件的所属部分确定了立法、行政、司法， 以及实施的行政领域。在行使他们的权力方面，这些被关注的政府部门的组织和权力长期以来都受到限制。这些对政府的限制通常在宪法中作为权力法案被进一步阐述。确定了全体选民的性质，这可能会涉及通过倡议或公民投票，或两者兼有来规定直接、普遍的立法。该文件还有一节专门详述正式修正案的过程。最终，每部宪法都包含了一个短暂的条款，阐述了文件的通过及其付诸实施的过程。

Rigid and Flexible Constitutions. A constitution is presumed to set down fundamentals, to deal with basic principles. Justice Benjamin Cardozo of the U. S. Supreme Court once said that a constitution should “state principles for an expanding future.” When a constitution deals only with basic matters, it lends itself to future interpretation and adaptation to changing conditions; thus it can be classified as flexible.

刚性与柔性宪法。宪法被假定为确定基本原理，处理基本原则。美国最高法院大法官本杰明·卡多佐曾说过，宪法应该“为扩展的未来规定原则”。当宪法只处理基本问题时，它就使自身有利于未来的解释，并适应于变化的条件；因此，它可被归类为柔性宪法。

On the other band, the more a constitution deals with details, with the application of fundamentals—the more it partakes of the nature of a statute—the more rigid it becomes. Unless a constitution of the latter type provides for an easy method of formal amendment, it becomes rigid to the point of paralysis. The normal distinction between a rigid and a flexible constitution is based on the ease of the amendment process. However, the basic content and phraseology of the document are at least as important in determining its real flexibility or rigidity. A constitution limited to fundamental principles properly EXPRESSED rarely needs amendment; it may be considered flexible even if difficult to amend.

另一方面，宪法处理的细节愈多，愈是注重基本原则的应用---它就愈具有成文法的性质---它就变得愈发的刚性。除非后一种类型的宪法对正式的修正规定了一种简单方法，否则它会变得刚性，直至瘫痪的地步。刚性与柔性宪法之间的正常区别在于修正过程的简易性。然而，该文件的基本内容和措辞至少在决定其真正的柔性和刚性方面同样重要。一部仅限于正确表达基本原则的宪法很少需要修正；即使它难以修改，它也可以被认为是柔性的宪法。

Amendment of Constitutions.  By its nature a constitution is something special and different from ordinary laws. It is the highest legal statement within a political state, the record of the decisions of the sovereign power. It follows that the means by which it is changed must differ from the methods of changing ordinary law. Amendments should be made either by a special body, as a constitutional convention, or by a special process by a regular lawmaking body, as an extraordinary vote of a legislature. Altering a constitution should be difficult. A document that deals with fundamental matters need not and should not be subject change to conform with the passing whims of the populace.

宪法的修正。就其本质而言，宪法是某种特殊的，不同于普通法律的东西。它是一个政治国家中最高的法律表述，是主权权力决定的记录。因此，改变它的方法必定不同于改变普通法律的那些方法。修正案要么应该由一个特殊机构做出，如制宪会议，要么通过一个特殊过程由正规的立法机构做出，如立法机关的特别投票表决。修改宪法应该是困难的。处理基本问题的文件不需要，也不应该为迎合民众一时的心血来潮而改变。

In the United States amendments may be proposed either by a two thirds vote of both houses of Congress or by a national constitutional convention called by Congress on petition by two thirds of the states. Subsequently the proposals are to be ratified, regardless of how they were introduced, either by a majority vote of the legislatures of THREE fourths of the states or by a convention in each of THREE fourths of the states.

在美国，修正案要么可由国会两院三分之二的投票提出，要么由国会根据州三分之二的请愿召集全国制宪会议提出。随后的提案，无论它们是如何出台的，都会被批准，要么通过四分之三的州立法机构的多数票通过，要么由四分之三的州各自召开大会通过。

In France a proposal for amendment of the constitution is introduced either by the president at the suggestion of the premier or by a member of Parliament; it must then be passed by each house of the national legislature and subsequently ratified by popular referendum. An alternative method is for the president to submit a proposal to a joint session of the national legislatures; in this case a THREE fifths vote is required, but no referendum is necessary. Australia, Switzerland, and Ireland require referendums for the ratification of amendments.

在法国，宪法修正的提案要么由总统根据总理的建议提出，要么由国会议员提出；然后，它必须由国家立法机关的各院通过，然后由公民投票批准。替代方法是总统向国家立法机构联席会议提交提案；在这种情况下，需要五分之三的投票，但无需公民投票。澳大利亚，瑞士以及爱尔兰对批准修正案要求进行公民投票。

See also CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES; CONSTITUTIONAL LAW.

也可参阅美国宪法；宪法法律词条。

                                       PAUL C. BARTHOLOMEW

                                       University of Notre Dame

                                       保罗·C. 巴塞洛缪

                                       诺特丹大学

                                         2023年5月29日译

（译者注：该词条位列《大美百科全书》1985年版，第7卷，第658页）